


Dream A Little Bigger

by BetsyByron



Category: Inception (2010), Mysterious Skin (2005)
Genre: Brothers, Casual Sex, Family Secrets, Innuendo, M/M, Meet the Family, Rape/Non-con References, References to Past Child Abuse, References to Prostitution, References to Sex, References to Underage Sex, Secret Relationship, Secrets, Twins, everything Mysterious skin in short, references to bondage and rough sex and hurt, then they catch feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-23
Updated: 2013-06-23
Packaged: 2017-12-15 22:54:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/854932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BetsyByron/pseuds/BetsyByron
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eames decides he's had enough of Arthur's secrecy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dream A Little Bigger

“Please, Uncle Arthur!”

“Yes, you are no fun, _Uncle Arthur_.”

Eames grinned widely as he mimicked Philipa’s little voice.

“I said I agreed to watch a movie with you.” Arthur said. “I didn’t say I’d agree to _any_ movie.”

“What did you expect, ‘Casablanca’?” Eames mocked. “They’re kids.”

Arthur looked sideways at James still clutching to the DVD box and puppy-eying him.

“You watch it with them.” He threw at Eames.

“It’s your turn.” Eames pointed out. “And I have a job tonight.”

“Yes, I am aware of that, with Cobb.” Arthur said sharply. “Which is why I am freaking babysitting his kids.”

“Language, darling.”

“Please, swap with me.” Arthur pleaded. “And I’ll use my tongue for other things than bad language.”

“Oh my God.” Eames hushed, repressing a giggle. “Even a seven year-old could see through innuendo that big. I’m not going to swap. They need a forger, not a point man.”

“I can make the opposite promise.” Arthur added, eyes narrowing. “No tongue for you for an undetermined amount of time.”

“God, stop it, you’ll scar them for life!”

“They’re not getting it.” Arthur shrugged.

Philippa sighed beside them, much closer than they had expected.

“Make up your mind?” She huffed. “It’s this one, and that is that.”

“I am _not_ watching ‘The Parent Trap’.” Arthur refused categorically.

“Well then, Uncle Eames, you lost.” The little girl said. “Because we all know you can’t survive more than twelve hours without kissing Arthur. With tongue.” She added with a hint of mischief.

“Clever kid.” Eames laughed. “Well then. You go, darling. You owe me one.”

“Right.” Arthur sniggered. “Have fun.”

“Oh, you too. I’ll let you deal with explaining to Cobb why he has to review his whole strategy last minute because he’s out of a forger.”

“Please.” Arthur said. “You’re hardly irreplaceable.”

*

Fact was everyone, Cobb included, pretty much ate out of Arthur’s hand. And although Eames was slightly annoyed that he could get away with anything, he did find that profoundly sexy.

Questions thus came after a good while of creatively using tongues and other parts of their bodies, as Arthur had allowed Eames into his apartment as a reward for Parent-trapping in his place.

“So, what was that about anyway?” Eames asked when they were both settled on the sofa in positions they weren’t likely to change for a while.

“What was what about?”

Eames marvelled – not for the first time – at the fact that even when exhausted by sex Arthur’s voice remained sharp as a razor.

“That movie.” He indicated. “Why did you block like that?”

“Are you sincerely asking? It was the ‘ _Parent Trap’_ , Eames, not exactly my favoured kind of movies.”

“And that, darling, is bullshit.” Eames accused. “You watched ‘Barbie and the Diamond Castle’ the other day when Philipa was missing her mom and crying, because you _love_ those kids more than you’ll admit. So why the tantrum last night?”

“I have personal reasons.” Arthur groaned. “Stop asking questions and you can stay the night.”

“You know what, you really have to stop this emotional blackmail.” Eames smiled, tightening his arm around Arthur.

*

“So what is going on between you two anyway?”

Arthur looked up from his book, and watched Ariadne lick the chocolate off her spoon for a moment – she was thoroughly enjoying some chocolate mousse Dom’s mother-in-law had made. The old woman swore she loved having them all around, and claimed them for her family. Nobody seemed to argue, least of all Ariadne.

“What do you mean?” Arthur asked for clarification.

“I mean, everyone knows you’re sleeping together, you have been for almost a year.” Ariadne exposed. “But recently? Kissing in public? Doing each other favours? Oh yeah, I got all the gossip from Philipa. What’s that about?”

“Eames is a beast, hence the kissing, and he cannot deny me anything, hence the favours.” Arthur replied without missing a beat.

“Sure.” Ariadne commented sceptically. After a pause, she decided to add: “You know he loves you, right?”

“Love?” Arthur snorted. “Don’t be such a girl. We don’t even trust each other. Admittedly I have some influence over him and he...gets to me in ways other people don’t, but I wouldn’t call that love.”

Ariadne had a pout, still not convinced.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

*

As it turned out, Eames helped Arthur sleep at night.

The following day, their extraction went pretty wrong, and they had to cut their losses and withdraw empty-handed. Arthur had made some minute errors, but as he usually made none, Cobb lashed out on him about blowing this for them.

“Easy, Dom.” Eames stepped in after a few minutes, since he wasn’t looking like he was calming down, and Arthur stood there taking it with clenched teeth. “Shit happens. Let’s all go home and have a good night’s sleep, and we’ll figure it out tomorrow.”

He had noticed Arthur had been looking tense since morning.

“Something on your mind?” He asked when the others were gone.

Arthur shook his head slowly.

“Nothing relevant.” He said. “Goodnight.”

He went his way, and Eames didn’t quite dare insist and follow him.

He received a text an hour later.

_Can’t sleep. Come?_

Eames didn’t need telling twice.

*

He left at dawn the next morning, leaving Arthur still asleep on the couch – he had found him there nursing a glass of scotch the night before, and after more drinking and a fair amount of making out, they hadn’t bothered moving it to the bedroom. They needed to find another way to their mark’s secrets, and forgery was the best way to go about it.

He came back around midday, at Cobb’s house, successful and smug, and while the rest of the team gave him the thanks and congratulations in order, he surprisingly found Arthur all but sulking. He said nothing in front of the rest of them – Arthur had told him about Ariadne virtually already buying her bridesmaid’s gown – but he managed to corner him a bit later.

“Everything alright darling?”

“Good job.” Arthur answered coldly.

“You’re mad at me.” Eames noticed with some surprise. “What have I done?”

“Nothing.”

“Tell me.” Eames insisted.

Arthur looked at him coldly.

“I do not appreciate being treated as a booty call.” He hissed.

“Hey, you’re the one who called.” The forger defended himself. “And I had work to do.”

Arthur’s face didn’t even twitch.

“It wasn’t even bloody six in the morning!” Eames argued. “I thought you could use the rest, I mean have you seen yourself lately? You’re tense, I’m pretty sure I haven’t seen you eat in 36 hours, and you don’t look like you’re sleeping too well.”

“I have my reasons.” Arthur snapped.

“You and you _reasons_.” Eames was starting to get angry.

“Just _don’t_ make decisions for me, Eames.” Arthur demanded. “I can handle myself. If I have more important things to do than eat and sleep, then it’s none of your business.”

“It’s not my _business_ , no.” Eames countered. “It’s what common people call _concern_.”

“Well I’m not common.” Arthur said in a final tone.

*

Arthur couldn’t have been more surprised to have Eames come knocking on his door that evening, Chinese takeaway in hand as a peace offering.

“I’m sorry.” He said.

Arthur looked even more confused.

“You’re sorry?” He repeated. “Not that _I_ planned on doing it, but I didn’t think you were the one who needed to apologise.”

“Well.” Eames smirked. “One of us had to do it if we wanted to move out of this deadlock. I can compromise.”

Arthur frowned.

“What is this?” He asked.

“This.” Eames sighed. “Is me knowing we’re never going to stop arguing, to different degrees. But it’s also me liking you too much to let it last.”

Arthur quirked an eyebrow.

“You mean it’s you acknowledging I’m the best sex you can have around here.”

“You can put it like that.”

Arthur let him in. They ate the oily noodles and the really not very good crispy duck, Arthur criticising Eames’ choice of restaurant, Eames Arthur’s posh-ness. Before long, they were tangled in each other on the couch, Eames licking a wet trail from Arthur’s collarbone to the back of his ear. He revelled in the way he shivered and lost his legendary composure under his touch.

“Shall we christen your bed?” Eames whispered tentatively in his ear.

Arthur cringed. Not the reaction Eames had expected.

“No.” The young man answered. “Couch is comfortable enough.”

“Oooh.” Eames beamed, sitting up. “What do you have in there? Spaceship wallpaper? Teddy bears all over?”

“Drop it, Eames.” Arthur asked, bucking his hips up just enough to make Eames effectively forget about potential teddy bears.

*

Having learned his lesson, the next morning Eames woke Arthur up by inconspicuously pressing his morning erection against the crest of his ass.

“You animal.” Arthur grumbled, still half-asleep.

“Breakfast?” Eames mouthed against the back of his neck.

“I think you have a misconceived definition of that word.” Arthur replied.

Eames laughed, kissed him in the neck and got up – not without a little slap on his butt cheek. They both jumped into some clothes, Arthur dismissing Eames’s not-so-subtle suggestions of a joined shower so offhandedly it got him doubting again.

“Don’t shut me out like that.” He said.

Arthur looked up, frowning.

“What are you on about?”

“Tell me things!”

Arthur almost laughed to his face.

“Why? Don't go sentimental on me. We have this thing going on-”

“And this _thing_ as you pleasantly call it has changed when you started inviting me over, hasn’t it?” Eames pointed out. “Even before that, when we stopped hiding from the rest of the group.”

“And that makes us, what? Boyfriends?” The point man scorned.

“I’m not saying that.” Eames shook his head. “I don’t think we’re there yet, even if we were to use teenager terminology to qualify what’s going on between us. But something is going on. And you have to let me in, beyond sex and beyond your couch.”

“No.” Arthur refused. “I draw lines for a reason, and that’s one. We work fine this way; I don’t see why you suddenly want to discuss my every feeling. I can’t live in the chaos you seem to favour, Eames. I need order. I need this relationship to remain clearly defined.”

“You think this is even a relationship? You are so damn guarded. If we are together, it’s give and take, darling. Learn to do that and then we can talk.”

Arthur looked wounded for a second.

“You don’t want to be together?”

“I don’t feel like we are. Not to mention the eleven months before that, I’ve been staying here for three nights, and the only room I’ve seen is this one.” He gestured around. “What are you so desperate to hide from me?”

“Well maybe I don’t want to tell you my secrets when I’m not even sure if you’ll be here in the morning or gone with the wind.”

“Well.” Eames retorted. “Maybe I don’t want to commit when you’re not even telling me your secrets.”

“This is stupid.” Arthur groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Vicious circle, uh?” Eames sniffed. “Well let’s break it.”

Before Arthur could put himself in his way, he charged to the bedroom door and flung it open.

“Eames, no!”

“Let’s see what you’re hiding in th-”

The word caught in his throat as he saw another man curled up in Arthur’s bed.

There was a moment of stunned, absolute silence – the world seemed to have ceased turning round.

“Oh you must be kidding me.” Eames breathed out, stepping away from the door.

“Eames, please-”

“Please?” Eames snapped. “PLEASE? What’s next, let me guess, you can explain?”

“Yes I can, if you would-”

“Fuck you, Arthur.” Eames spat. “And I do _not_ mean that as an insinuation. You are a bloody liar and a cold-hearted-”

“Arthur?” Came a voice from the half-obscurity of the room. “What the hell is going on?”

“Yeah.” Eames turned back to Arthur. “Wanna tell lover boy here what the hell is going on?”

Arthur cast Eames a cold look.

“I thought you didn’t want to hear my explanations.”

“I don’t.” Eames retorted, all the more backing up than he could see the other guy getting up. “I’m out of here.”

But then, Arthur’s mysterious bed occupant crossed the threshold into the light. Arthur tried to push him back, a flicker of anguish across his face before he recomposed himself. Which was more than could be said of Eames.

Bewildered, he looked at the copy of Arthur who’d just appeared. Not as polished, with a weird haircut, possibly even thinner and sporting a few bruises on his face and suspicious red streaks on his wrists, but it was the same thin mouth, the same dark eyes, the same damn gorgeous face.

“Eames.” Arthur sighed. “This is Neil. As you may have guessed, my twin brother. Neil, this is Eames. As you may have guessed, my lover.”

*

Eames had needed to sit down, and to gulp down a glass of whisky, before he could speak.

“You have a brother.” He stated.

“Obviously.” Arthur rolled his eyes.

Neil had slipped on a t-shirt, otherwise he was still in his boxers, which didn’t seem to bother either of them. Eames forced himself not to stare. He wasn’t as muscled as Arthur, but he was beautiful, and the most inappropriate fantasies threatened to invade his thoughts if he didn’t watch out.

“A twin brother.” Eames kept on reaffirming the facts. “Why have I never heard about him?”

“How long have you known Arthur?” Neil stepped in.

“A good six years.” Eames answered.

“Well, that’s longer than me.” Neil shrugged.

“What?” Eames reacted after a beat.

Arthur sighed.

“I’m sure you remember my ‘tantrum’, as you called it, about that stupid movie.” He reminded him.

“’The Parent Trap’, yes.” Eames confirmed – Neil snorted joylessly.

“Well, our parents pulled something like that on us.” Arthur explained. “Without the happy ending. I only found out about Neil about a year ago – in fact,” he seemed to remember, “the first time I jumped your bones, it was out of distress. I had just found out.”

“Nice.” Eames winced.

He didn’t go further than that, because he had always known Arthur had not started sleeping with him out of the love in his heart. Their first time together wasn’t something he liked to remember. Arthur had been drunk, desperate, and distressed indeed, and if Eames was completely honest he had maybe slightly taken advantage of that instead of trying to calm him down. They had talked it through eventually, and started again on better grounds, but Eames always wondered if they’d be together if it wasn’t for that disaster of a night back then.

“The thing is,” Neil pursued, ignoring the look Arthur gave him. “He didn’t just find out he had a twin brother at the other end of the country. He found out he’d lived his whole life as a little prince in total ignorance of all the fucked up crap I barely survived in the meantime.”

“He still resents me.” Arthur commented.

“Not at all.” Neil denied. “The odds were in your favour, that’s nobody’s fault. Our places could easily have been reversed. Neil the Harvard graduate. Arthur the prostitute.”

“What?” Eames said again. He was increasingly confused.

“Our father was rich.” Arthur explained, resigned. “Very rich. Our mother was...”

“A promiscuous hippie.” Neil provided. “She got better.”

“Anyway.” Arthur sighed. “It was completely out of the question that they should marry. Not that they wanted to, it was a fling. When she got pregnant, Father agreed to own up to his responsibilities and pay a pension from afar. But there were two of us, two boys, and he saw the appeal of having an heir, even a bastard one, so he grabbed one baby, left her with the other – they agreed to live far apart so we would never meet, never know about each other, and they wouldn’t have to see each other ever again. I grew up in the family mansion lacking nothing, Neil...”

“Had a mom who worked such long hours she was barely home, and when she was she distracted herself with boyfriends and left me to myself. Left me so affection depraved I let myself believe my little league coach loved me – I was eight. When that was over, it only took me a few years to figure out a way not to have to ask my mom for pocket money. It helped that I was by far the prettiest boy on offer in the dump of a town where I lived.”

He had a slightly drawling accent, a voice more twangy that Arthur’s. Eames found himself not really liking it. Still, he was fascinated – and slightly horrified – by what Neil was telling him.

“I went to New York, it didn’t turn out too well.” He went on. “I came back home, dealt with the shit in my past, hanged out with this guy Brian for a while, took a job at the local bar – you know, a very exciting life and all that. Then one night my mom got particularly drunk, and spilled the beans about how my father wasn’t actually a sailor she had had a passionate three days affair with, and how there were two of me. I set off to find Arthur then. Took me a while, but here I am.”

“He showed up at my door about a year ago.” Arthur completed. “We talked all night, before I had to leave for the job in the morning.”

“Dubai.” Eames recalled. “Nice hotel.”

“Yeah, bet you liked it.” Neil commented cheekily. “You’d wanted him for a while, hadn’t you? You can thank me.”

“Neil.” Arthur said in a warning tone.

“What?” Neil acted innocent. “I meant verbal thanks, nothing appropriate. I’m not going to steal your boyfriend.”

“He’s not my boyfriend.”

“Well.” Neil winked. “From what I’ve overheard last night, he’s at least a decent lover.”

“Please stop.” Arthur protested.

“Oh but I was proud.” Neil went on. “By the sound of it, you’re at least half as good a fuck as I am, Arty.”

“You’re not as good as you think if every other guy you sleep with beats you.” Arthur snapped.

Neil cringed, grabbing his own wrist suddenly and rubbing it like he’d just been stung.

“God, I’m sorry.” Arthur said immediately. “I didn’t mean... Sorry.”

Neil had a bitter smile.

“What can I say. I’ve had a thing for abusers since I was eight.”

“It’s not funny.” Arthur frowned.

“You started it.” Neil shrugged. “It’s true though. I like it rough. Sometimes, well, the guys I pick like it rougher.”

“You really have to stop, Neil.” Arthur said softly. “Stop picking those guys. Even if you’re no longer getting paid, it doesn’t protect you from jackasses. One day you’ll...”

He stopped himself, and the brothers exchanged a pointed look. Eames suspected he didn’t want to know, but by the way Neil hugged himself, there was an _again_ at the end of the unspoken sentence.

“He arrived yesterday afternoon beaten half to death.” Arthur explained, turning to Eames. “Because he actually _specifically_ answered an online advert for hardcore bondage.”

“I couldn’t know he meant all work and no play.” Neil defended sulkily.

“No.” Arthur admitted gently. “And I’m not saying it’s your fault. If that’s how you like it, you have every right to do it, but aren’t there safer ways than bloody online ads? I’m just saying you’re increasing the risk for things to go wrong. And you worry me sick. You could try to have normal sex sometimes.”

Neil sniffed derisorily.

“You know, even the most normal, nice looking guys may turn out to be psychopaths.”

“Yes.” Arthur sighed. “But you don’t need to go specifically for those who say up front they want to hurt you, even as a kink.”

Neil pursed his lips, and his face clearly said _You don’t understand_ , but he didn’t add anything.

Arthur and Eames had to go, a meeting with Cobb for a potential job Saito might have for them. Arthur gave his brother a few quick instructions – which Neil rolled his eyes at – and they left together, Arthur’s whole body language clearly projecting a loud and clear _Don’t even try talking to me_. Naturally, it didn’t stop Eames for much longer than ten minutes.

“Why were you so set on hiding him?” He asked.

He was surprised when Arthur actually sighed and answered.

“Because he acts tough, but he’s so fragile. And because you’re mine. I didn’t want to introduce you as another attractive, forbidden fruit into his life.”

Eames frowned.

“What, you were genuinely concerned that he’d steal me away? That I’d go for him like you weren’t giving me enough?”

“I don’t trust you yet.” Arthur justified. “And I sure as hell don’t trust Neil. Next thing I know he’ll fall in love with you and hearts will be broken.”

“Whose hearts?” Eames couldn’t stop himself.

“His. Mine. Both. Yes, wipe off the smug smile, I do have a heart, Eames. And if it’s not this way around, trust me, Neil is a misery trap too. If you get attached, you’re doomed. Look at what he does to me.”

“He’s your brother.” Eames noted. “Your twin brother.”

“Yes. Which means he is essentially a part of me walking around catching trouble and exposing me. I feel raw whenever he is around, I feel defenceless, I _hate_ it.” His fists tightened, and he was visibly ill at ease – tense, like he had been for days. Now Eames knew why. “But I don’t hate _him_.” Arthur added. “He’s my brother, and I want him safe and happy. Which is not something Neil is, generally speaking.”  

He looked over to Eames, who had a face announcing a bad idea. Arthur sighed.

“What?”

“You’re going to hate this suggestion.” Eames announced. “But... I think your brother needs a job. He needs to get out more, to get busy, to meet people that are not sex maniacs.”

“Oh, no.” Arthur shook his head. “I see where this is going.”

“And a grand-mother figure would help to. And having someone smaller and more fragile to take care of.”

“Eames.” Arthur stopped him. “Maybe he does need a job. But not my job.”

“He wouldn’t take your job, he’d just be an addition to the team. If only symbolically, it doesn’t really matter if he can’t work dreams. He just needs to be surrounded, helped out of his past. He’ll resist.” He added, cutting off the words before they passed Arthur’s lips. “And pretend he hates all of us. But I think this is what he needs. Friends and family.”

Arthur shook his head.

“You only just met him. You don’t know him one bit.”

“I know you.”

“He’s nothing like me.”

Eames smiled.

“I’ve seen him for twenty minutes, and I can already tell you that yes, you have much more in common than you think. There is a common core there. And even if I didn’t feel that, even if I hadn’t seen him at all, he came to you, Arthur. The minute he learned about your existence, he came to find you. Now what does that tell you?”

Arthur shrugged.

“For all I know, that he needed money.”

Eames shook his head.

“Don’t act dumb about this. He needs _you_. And you need to get your head out of your ass and accept the fact that you love your brother even if you only met him a year ago. You want him out of his crap life; this is the way out of his crap life. Into yours.”

*

It took a lot of sweet-talking, both to Arthur and Neil, but eventually they agreed to try out Eames’s plan. A loving entourage and some occupation. None of the twins believed this was the miracle remedy to all ills, but they were ready to humour Eames if only to shut him up – he was rather insistent about this whole thing.

“So.” He asked Arthur in the car with a smile. “What did Cobb say when you told him you were bringing your brother?”

“I didn’t tell him.” Arthur replied. “I didn’t have time for questions.”

“There is also the small matter of the questions we don’t want to answer.” Neil added. “Those won’t pop up as soon as tonight at least, not with the kids and the grandparents around.”

“So wait.” Eames ensured. “You’re going to walk in looking like someone photocopied you and you warned nobody?”

“Oh come on.” Neil grinned. “I thought you were the fun one.”

“I did phone the lady of the house to say they’d be an extra guest for dinner.”

“How courteous of you.”

“And I did tell Cobb I had a potential new team member for him to interview. Not that I think he’ll refuse. You don’t turn down an asset like that.”

Eames hadn’t really thought of that, but yeah, two team members looking exactly the same would be an excellent strategic advantage to work on marks. Now it was another matter entirely to know if Neil would be up to it, or an enormous liability.

When they arrived at the Cobb-in-law property, James ran up to the car excitedly to greet them. And when Neil got off first, he jumped into his arms.

“Uncle Arthur!” Then, with a frown. “You look different.”

“Hey kiddo.” Neil smiled to him. “Name’s Neil. What’s your name?”

“It’s James.”

He wriggled out of Neil’s arms, spotting Arthur, the real one, now behind him; he reassured himself by hanging on to one of his legs, eying Neil suspiciously. Eames parked the car and joined them – and refrained from laughing out loud at Ariadne’s face when she came out of the house.

“What.” She kept blinking. “Just. What.”

“Let’s go inside.” Arthur said. “I’ll make the introductions.”

“Did he clone himself?” Ariadne slipped Eames as they all followed in. “That sounds like something he would do, right?”

They went directly to the dining room, in which Cobb and his parents in law, already sitting around the table, opened eyes like saucers when they saw Neil.

“Uncle Arthur!” Philipa exclaimed. “You have a brother?”

“The seven-year old got a more intelligent explanation than you.” Eames whispered to Ariadne, who turned and scowled, but brought her curious gaze back on the two Arthurs very quickly.

“Everyone.” First Arthur gestured at second Arthur. “This is my twin brother Neil. Neil, this is Ariadne, Dominick, Marie and Stephen, who are Dom’s in-laws, and Philipa, and James you’ve already met, his children. The rest of us are, sort of, adopted squatters.”

Neil turned to his brother curiously.

“What?” Arthur reacted defensively.

“This is a pretty large family for someone who claimed he never had one, didn’t need one.”

Arthur only smiled.

“Yes, it is.” He admitted. “And Neil?”

He put a hand on his twin’s shoulder, and swiped his other arm in front of him to indicate the people around the room.

“Welcome to the family.”

 


End file.
